The Kinks

Why were The Kinks banned in USA in the ’60s?

ZR — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 14:54:34 +0000

Some things went well on The Kinks’ first American tour, in the summer of 1965: the band discovered the pleasures of pizza, malted milkshakes, and buxom groupies. But the band was in turmoil; earlier that year, Dave Davies and Mick Avory had a fight onstage in Wales, which started with Davies spitting at Avory and ended with Avory hitting Davies over the head with the pedal to his high-hat cymbal. So none of The Kinks were speaking to each other, and on any given night, the band’s management wasn’t sure how the Kinks would behave: whether they would do a full show, or come to blows, or treat the audience to a 45-minute version of “You Really Got Me” (as the band’s road manager says they did on one evening, although a roadie insists they didn’t play the song for the entire show).

Although Ray Davies has called tales of The Kinks’ American misbehavior “character assassination, [a] plot to destroy us,” sources close to the band confirm that they found trouble wherever they went, at least some of it of their own making. The band skipped a show in Sacramento, Ray Davies punched a union official who kept insinuating that England was already as good as Communist, and they appeared on a Dick Clark special for NBC without paying their mandatory dues to the American Federation of Television and Recording Artists. The upshot was the Federation blacklisted them–although they never gave a specific reason as to why–and the Kinks could not return to the States for over four years. Years later, Davies mused, “In many respects, that ridiculous ban took away the best years of The Kinks’ career when the original band was performing at its peak.”

(Excerpted from the 2006 book Is Tiny Dancer Really Elton’s Little John?: written by Gavin Edwards.)

The Kinks Pinkpop 1977 part 2

ZR — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 13:51:55 +0000

Sunny Afternoon

The Kinks Pinkpop 1977

ZR — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 14:16:19 +0000

The Kinks played for 45,000 spectators in 1977 at the famous and legendary Dutch festival Pinkpop with acts like om Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Racing Cars, Golden Earring, Bothy Band, Nils Lofgren and the Manfred Mann’s Earth Band. The Kinks were the highlight of the festival. There are no video recordings of it but we have found a song recorded in the audience. Enjoy it!

Interview Dave Davies Uncut

ZR — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 18:23:38 +0000

Here an interview with Dave Davies in the January 2012 edition of Uncut.

The Kinks at the Top 2000

ZR — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 15:01:20 +0000

The Top 2000 is a radio program on the Dutch radio station Radio 2, and has been broadcast since 1999. It is broadcast annually at the end of the year. The top 2000 was created in 1999 as part of activities surrounding the passing into the new millennium. The idea was to finish the year 1999, and enter the year 2000, with the 2000 best songs ever made. From the start of 1999, the listeners of Radio 2 were asked to select a song along with any special memories attached to the song, and send it to Radio 2 via mail or email. At the start of November 1999, these songs were placed on a website, and the voting was started. This led to the Top 2000. In 2002 a television show was added to the Top 2000, called the Top 2000 a Go-Go, which shows clips of parts of the list, along with interviews and other items. Since 2003, Radio 2, along with NPS, a public TV-broadcaster, has been organizing the Top 2000 in concert, where famous Dutch artists are invited to sing one of their favorite songs, along with one of their own songs. The concert is usually broadcast on New Year’s Eve, right after the top 2000 has ended.

The Dutch band The Hype recently launched a new initiative called hyped Sessions. A series of videos showing the band in a pop classics “hyped jacket” sticks to show where the band gets its inspiration. In this second video hyped the band plays the beautiful Waterloo Sunset by The Kinks.

Ray Davies – AVO Session 2010 – Nothin’ Can’t Stop Me Worryin’ About That Girl

ZR — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 17:56:38 +0000

On 26 October 2010, Davies was presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award at his AVO Session concert in Basel; the concert was televised internationally.

AVO SESSION Basel is an indoor music festival, which takes place every October/November in Basel, Switzerland. The festival features international as well as national artists of diverse music genres in an intimate club setting. In 2010 the festival celebrated its 25th jubilee.

Ray Davies with Mando Diao – Live

ZR — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 15:11:38 +0000

On September 2, 2010, Mando Diao recorded an MTV Unplugged concert at Union Film-Studios in Berlin, featuring guest appearances by Daniel Haglund, Ray Davies, Klaus Voormann, Juliette Lewis and Lana Del Rey. The concert was released on CD and DVD in late 2010.

Kinks – Father Christmas covers

ZR — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 14:57:16 +0000

Father Christmas

When I was small I believed in Santa Claus
Though I knew it was my dad
And I would hang up my stocking at Christmas
Open my presents and I’d be glad

But the last time I played Father Christmas
I stood outside a department store
A gang of kids came over and mugged me
And knocked my reindeer to the floor

They said:
Father Christmas, give us some money
Don’t mess around with those silly toys.
We’ll beat you up if you don’t hand it over
We want your bread so don’t make us annoyed
Give all the toys to the little rich boys

Don’t give my brother a Steve Austin outfit
Don’t give my sister a cuddly toy
We don’t want a jigsaw or monopoly money
We only want the real McCoy

Father Christmas, give us some money
We’ll beat you up if you make us annoyed
Father Christmas, give us some money
Don’t mess around with those silly toys

But give my daddy a job ’cause he needs one
He’s got lots of mouths to feed
But if you’ve got one, I’ll have a machine gun
So I can scare all the kids down the street

Father Christmas, give us some money
We got no time for your silly toys
We’ll beat you up if you don’t hand it over
We want your bread so don’t make us annoyed
Give all the toys to the little rich boys

Have yourself a merry merry Christmas
Have yourself a good time
But remember the kids who got nothin’
While you’re drinkin’ down your wine

Father Christmas, give us some money
We got no time for your silly toys
Father Christmas, please hand it over
We’ll beat you up, so don’t make us annoyed

Father Christmas, give us some money
Don’t mess around with those silly toys
We’ll beat you up if you don’t hand it over
We want your bread so don’t make us annoyed
Give all the toys to the little rich boys

Ok Go - Father Christmas

Hopetown Records - Father Christmas

Bowling for Soup- Father Christmas

Lit - Father Christmas

And at last the original

Ray Davies, rare acoustic 1977

ZR — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 14:50:22 +0000

Acoustic set Ray Davies on a Fortworth radio station in April, 1977.
Performing the following songs:

- Life on the road
- A well respected man
- Here come the people in grey
- 20th Century man
- Acute schizophrenia paranoia blues
- Oklahoma USA

Music that inspired The Kinks (part1)

ZR — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 15:25:22 +0000

This is a song of Bill Doggett which Ray Davies has inspired to write all of his magnificent songs.